January 7, 2023 marked the return of major award shows after the Hollywood Strike with the star-studded Golden Globes. The night which was supposed to be a great celebration of film in 2023 began as a disaster before taking a better turn. The show started off on a very shaky foot with comedian Jo Koy making some distasteful remarks about “Barbie” and Taylor Swift that left people upset.
Koy’s remarks quickly set the internet ablaze, many calling him and the network misogynistic and crass. Many people felt offended when he ridiculed women and women-led projects.
“The jokes really weren’t funny, and his words belittled two of the biggest successes of the year just because they were women,” Lambert sophomore Tarania Ramesh said.
“The host’s words literally showed why we need movies like the Barbie movie, and it was great to see that the audience didn’t laugh or appreciate such jokes.”
When Koy’s jokes landed flatly among the audience, he was quick to deflect and blame his writers, claiming that whatever the audience was laughing at, he wrote and the rest was botched up comedy produced by his writers. Koy’s joke about ‘Barbie’ stuck out the most as he tried to demean it and compare it to “Oppenheimer.”
“Oppenheimer is based on a 721-page Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the Manhattan Project, and Barbie is on a plastic doll with big *****,” Host Joe Koy said.
This joke was not only highly insulting to the actors and director, but also women across the nation. Koy’s words reduced a heartfelt women-led project and made an insensitive joke about it. Many people called out the host’s terrible behavior and urged the Golden Globes to take accountability for the disaster. People are even saying that Koy has been the worst Golden Globes host of all time.
“I really hope this doesn’t happen again in future awards shows because that is just embarrassing,” Ramesh stated.
The idea that such misogyny can be propagated at such a prestigious awards ceremony upsetted people everywhere. In the year where women’s issues were highlighted and their achievements were celebrated so widely, seeing their work disregarded is saddening. Such jokes seem very unpleasant on large scale platforms.
However, there were some silver linings to what started as a bad night. For example, Lily Gladstone won best actress in a Drama, making her the first indigenous woman to receive the award. Her acceptance speech was incredibly poignant and eloquent as she began by speaking in the Blackfeet language. Their speech highlighted the struggles of indigenous actors and noted the strides made in Native representation. Christopher Nolan also won his first Golden Globe alongside actors Cillian Murphy and Robert Downey Jr. for the success that was “Oppenheimer.”
Despite the controversies and awkward moments, the Golden Globes still managed to highlight significant achievements, such as Lily Gladstone’s historic win. However, the night served as a reminder of the importance of thoughtful hosting to ensure an inclusive celebration of the film industry. Moving forward, the hope is that future award ceremonies prioritize respect to foster a more positive atmosphere.
